PUSH ALF TO NEW HEIGHTS
WHERE Alfredo Morelos will be 12 months from now is anyone’s guess.
The Rangers striker’s scoring exploits come with an inevitable side effect, with fans beginning to accept his future could lie away from Ibrox.
A January departure has been ruled out by the Ibrox club, making next summer the point at which player and adoring support may say their goodbyes.
But whatever happens, Morelos will hope his journey includes one meaningful milestone.
While we cast aspersions over the commitment, or lack of, certain players in the Scotland squad, the same accusation can’t be levelled at Morelos and his beloved Colombia.
There’s an immense pride at representing his country, which is why the emotional pull of next year’s Copa America on home soil mustn’t be understated in his ongoing Rangers redemption arc.
South America’s premier international competition will be co-hosted by Colombia and Argentina in June 2020, a year on from the bitter disappointment Morelos endured.
An ignominious end to the 2018-19 season where disciplinary issues, not goals, were the focal point saw him failed to secure a place on boss Carlos Quieroz’s provisional squad.
But there are already signs things could well be different next time out.
A total of 22 Rangers goals by November, a first international strike and a near-spotless rap sheet point to the penny having dropped. It’s a turnaround
ANALYSIS BY LIAM BRYCE for which he deserves enormous credit.
It also points to a player who saw opportunities that may have slipped away had things not changed – his Premier League dream, the Copa America in Colombia, and the chance to become a genuine Ibrox hero.
Morelos has been open about his desire to play in England’s top flight. And the importance of international recognition is clear. Remember how his home town of Cerete came out in the street to witness his debut, a 13-minute cameo in a friendly against Venezuela?
It’s a love that’s clearly mutual, with the player launching the ‘Fundacion Alfredo Morelos’ in September in the hope of unearthing the next “El Bufalo” and creating the same pathway to Europe.
And perhaps, there’s a want to repay the fans and manager who stuck by him during last season’s red cards, when some said he had become a lost cause who should be cut loose.
Eight months on from his final misdemeanour at Celtic, followed by the Colombia snub and it appears to be fuelling a prolific campaign which has Marco Negri wondering if his 33-goal mid-season tally may just be under threat.
Should the Italian’s 22-year record fall, it’s a win-win for everyone at Ibrox. Morelos’ Colombian dream will edge closer to reality, while possibly dragging Rangers to that long-awaited major trophy.